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Earlier this month the "Too Much, Too Soon" campaign made headlines with a letter calling for a change to the start age for formal learning in schools. Cambridge researcher David Whitebread, explains why children may need more time to develop before their formal education begins in earnest...There are several strands of evidence which all point towards the importance of play in young children’s development, and the value of an extended period of playful learning before the start of formal schooling. Read full article

A National Early Literacy Campaign launched this week in Australia aims to see all Australian children gain the foundation skills for language, literacy, and ultimately, learning success. Let’s Read is an Australian Government initiative developed by Royal Children’s Hospital’s Centre for Community Child Health, to be implemented by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and The Smith Family. The campaign delivers this important message - reading with children aged 0-5years is probably the single-most important activity parents can do with their children to enhance their child’s future ability to read and write. Read full article

For some parents, it’s one of the hardest goodbyes – the day when you leave your five year old at primary school for the first time. It’s no easier when friends gloat about how well prepared their child was, and tell you all the tricks and hints they used to get them used to the idea of ‘big school’...Following are 8 tips to help your child settle at primary school – each of these alone or together will help you and your child ease into the new experience... Read full article

It’s several weeks into the primary school year and my five-year-old son is experiencing his share of ups and downs adjusting to life at ‘big school’. The highs (for both of us) include waving me happily off each morning, and the beautiful hug he gives his sister every afternoon on their reunion at the school gates ... But then there are the difficult moments. Such a big life change has also come with its fair share of big emotions for my sensitive boy. After trying so hard to concentrate and control his impulses all day, those emotions often came home looking for an outlet. Any small thing has the potential to set him off ... Read full article

My older son starts high school this year, transferring to a school where he will know no others students on his first day ...I have been giving some thought to what advice I would give my son if he asked me. Not that he is likely to, of course, given that he is now All-Grown-Up-and-Not-A-Child-Anymore, but it doesn’t hurt to be prepared, just in case. Read full article

My son recently turned 5. I remember 12 months ago when he turned 4, thinking – that’s it, that’s the end of my baby. I couldn’t even classify him as a toddler any more – he was really a kid. His vocabulary was growing every day, and combined with his natural curiosity this meant he was asking increasingly complex questions about the world around him. He had begun to show some resilience and self-control as he matured. And then something peculiar happened. Read full article

Many of you would have recently had the completely terrifying first day at school experience, and I'm not necessarily talking about those cute little things in their oversize uniforms, skipping off without a backward glance. No, first days at school are way more terrifying for parents ... The really big decisions came with high school ... Read full article

Helping your child to develop the personal strengths and social skills they need to survive the transition to primary school. Julia Richardson talks to an experience pre-school teacher and outlines some tips to help your child meet the challenge of starting primary school. Read full article

Julia Richardson's article helps parents find ways to help kids with Autism Spectrum Disorder (and Asperger’s Syndrome) deal with the annual challenge of new teachers, new classrooms, new classmates and a new routine. Stress caused by change is a big challenge for children with ASD but there are things that parents and schools can do to help. Read full article

Justine Watson has dedicated her career to helping families deal with the particular challenges faced by kids with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). She knows that the change of routine that comes with each new school year can be enormously stressful for the kids, and their parents. She also knows that parents can do something to make the experience less traumatic for the whole family. Read full article